torsdag, december 23, 2010

Thoughts of a Snowman

-25º this evening! Guess I'd better go under Hibernation Mode during the holidays. Zzzzzzzz

When I first read H. C. Andersen's The Little Match Girl story at 7, I remember I couldn't understand why it's important for the girl to strike one match after another to keep the vision of her grandmother alive, and how it's possible for someone to die staying outdoors without a shelter for just one night. But now it's the opposite: I think it's only sensible that children's books contain more truth than what adults would 'seriously' read everyday. At some certain point of my life I felt I stopped growing any more. Or in the words of Thomas Hardy, "every spirit upon earth seemed fervorless as I", he wrote in his New Years Day poem The Darkling Thrush, originally titled By the Century's Deathbed. That's why I appreciate Andersen's fairy tales more and more even as I'm no longer a child - the stories are not just wise, they really read like a blessing if your heart is receptive enough for the messages.

All of a sudden, I thought about the night before Christmas Day when I departed for the Holy Land ten years ago. Life was then like an uncharted sea voyage, full of nervousness but also fun and longings. Only the sweet dreams and didn't wish to wake up again too soon. So, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! :-)

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